“The entry into service of Ka-Sat … turns a new page in affordable and immediately available IP solutions, and places Europe at the forefront of high-capacity satellite technologies that can serve to quickly close the broadband gap. We look forward to working with our service and technology partners to unleash the huge potential of this new pan-European wireless infrastructure,” Eutelsat CEO Michel de Rosen said in a statement.

    Ka-Sat is equipped with more than 70 Gbps of capacity and provides a considerable upgrade to Eutelsat’s legacy Eurobird 3 satellite system, which provided 2Mbps downlink speeds. Ka-Sat’s most valuable asset is its 82 narrow spot beams that connect to 10 ground stations and a network of eight gateways across Europe.

    Tooway and its local distributors are providing the service in a range of four standard packages, offering speeds from 6Mbps to 10Mbps for download and 1Mbps to 4Mbps for upload with corresponding data allowances. Hardware installation components for consumers include a 77-centimeter satellite dish and a ViaSat SurfBeam 2 modem that connects to a home computer. ViaSat also provided its SurfBeam 2 hub system at Eutelsat’s teleports.

    Eutelsat’s Director of Multimedia and Value-Added Services Arduino Patacchini previously told Satellite News at the end of Marck that Ka-Sat’s entry into service would change the operator’s business model and that a slew of take-up contracts could make a second Ka-band satellite launch a reality.

    “We don’t know what will happen with the take-up of capacity on Ka-Sat. We are assuming the consumption of bandwidth will increase,” Patacchini said. “If the capacity fills very quickly, the option to create the second Ka-Sat is there. The speed is comparable for ASDL2, but we would look to a second satellite. We have the orbital position. One of the advantages is Ka-Sat is that it covers all of Europe. We need to make sure the business works, before we make another investment.”

    Patacchini’s comments came after Skylogic signed an initial five-year contract worth 3 million euros ($4.22 million) with SkyDSL to market its Tooway broadband service provided by Ka-Sat on March 28. Under the SkyDSL2 Plus brand, SkyDSL will offer consumers and small businesses download speeds of up to 10 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 4 Mbps via its sales channels. The companies will launch SkyDSL2 Plus in mid-2011 following Ka-Sat’s entry into service and will be provided on an international basis.

     Idate Satellite Analyst Maxime Baudry told Satellite News that Eutelsat must now prove it can monetize strong broadband market opportunities in Europe, particularly in countries such as Italy, Germany, Poland and Romania, where its rival SES is also accelerating its development efforts. “In Germany for instance, 80 percent of the rural population had access to less than 2 Mbps in 2010 according to our findings. In Poland, it was 90 percent of the population that had less than 2 Mbps, so we think in all cases satellite broadband is expected to develop at a fast pace in Europe. Idate forecasts around 700,000 subscribers by 2015 in this zone,” she said.

     De Rosen said that Eutelsat is targeting the service to high-end customers as well, including enterprises and newsgathering agencies that demand delivery of up to 40 Mbps down and 10 Mbps up. The operator also said that the service would offer upgrade speeds to 50 Mbps downlink and 20 Mbps in the next few months.